New cooker - full electric or dual fuel

tomek_2

It has always been been the concensus that a gas hob was cheaper to run than an electric one.
Recently with the price of gas rocketing to new levels, is it still the right choice when replacing the cooker?
Of course, when the environment is taken into account, it should always be fully electric, as electricity can be generated without the need for fossil fuels, but when it comes to runnig costs, I'm not sure which which is the cheaper option, so looking for advice.

dunstonh

You use barely any gas on a hob.   So, its more a case of personal choice.

Of course, when the environment is taken into account, it should always be fully electric, as electricity can be generated without the need for fossil fuels, but when it comes to runnig costs, I'm not sure which which is the cheaper option, so looking for advice.

However, a lot of our electricity comes from burning gas and occasionally coal.  We are not at the stage where you can class electricity as being fossil fuel free.

matelodave

We've had both and once upon a time would have always had a gas hob and electric oven.

However since we moved to a place which is all electric and no gas we've got an induction hob and we think that it's brilliant.

We've had ceramic, halogen and even the old coiled things but nothing has been anywhere as good as induction

As controllable as gas, quicker than gas and cleaner than gas insofar as there's no condensation from burning gas and stuff doesn't burn onto the hob or outside of the pans. It just needs a wipe over to keep it looking pristine. Even our pans look as good as the day we bought them eleven years ago and they are used every day.

Dunno about the cost comparison but even if we had gas available we wouldn't go back to a gas hob or oven.

tim_p

We’ve got both (gas hob, electric oven) and would do the same again, based on having the ability to cook on gas should there be a power cut. 

tomek_2

tim_p said:

We’ve got both (gas hob, electric oven) and would do the same again, based on having the ability to cook on gas should there be a power cut. 

This is exactly the benefit of dual fuel, I'm enjoying at the moment. The electric part of the oven packed up, but the gas hob is still working, all I need is a box of matches to start it up.

I will probably go for the same as a replacement, though I will  change once more of the UK power is from renewables, or if I live long enough to see gas supplies stopped.

ccbrowning

Love my induction hob. I have had only a few super short power cuts in 15 years…

FreeBear

ccbrowning said: Love my induction hob. I have had only a few super short power cuts in 15 years…

Same here. An induction hob is just as controllable as gas without the slow heat up/down times of most electric rings. The only real downside is you have to be selective about the pans - If the bottom isn't magnetic, it won't work on induction, so bin those cheap aluminium pans.

If I get a power cut here, can always use a camping stove..

tim_p

Cost wise, how does an induction hob compare to a gas one?  Presumably just the difference in cost (approx 4-5x) between gas and electric kWh/£  Cooking on gas, in the summer months we use less than a kWh of gas per day on average over the month. 

QrizB

tim_p said:

Cost wise, how does an induction hob compare to a gas one?  Presumably just the difference in cost (approx 4-5x) between gas and electric kWh/£  Cooking on gas, in the summer months we use less than a kWh of gas per day on average over the month. 

In my previous house we had gas for cooking only - oven and hob. Checking my records, in 6 years we used 168 cubic metres (roughly 300kWh/yr, so a similar figure to tim_p's).

victor2

tim_p said:

Cost wise, how does an induction hob compare to a gas one?  Presumably just the difference in cost (approx 4-5x) between gas and electric kWh/£  Cooking on gas, in the summer months we use less than a kWh of gas per day on average over the month. 

Many years ago I did an experiment to compare boiling a kettle on gas against an electric kettle. Despite the difference in price per kWh, they came out almost exactly the same, mainly because the electric kettle is so much more efficient than a gas hob/kettle setup. Electric was much faster too!

I imagine the same would apply to induction versus gas hob. There is next to no wasted heat on induction, where a gas hob will waste a lot - albeit warming the kitchen a little, so not entirely wasted on a cold day.

FreeBear

tim_p said:

Cost wise, how does an induction hob compare to a gas one?  Presumably just the difference in cost (approx 4-5x) between gas and electric kWh/£  Cooking on gas, in the summer months we use less than a kWh of gas per day on average over the month. 

That very much depends on how much you are cooking in one go - Most days, I'll cook a meal on two "rings" and be done in under 10 minutes, so use less than 1KWh at a guess. On that basis, energy usage is probably comparable..

Much easier to clean though, and it is a nice flat area for putting "stuff" down when not cooking.